Floor treating apparatus



Feb. 21, 1961 A. H. SMITH 2,972,155

FLOOR TREATING- APPARATUS Filed Nov. 20, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 [FIGS INVENTOR. AARON H. SMITH WQwL/"FW ATT'YS.

Feb. 21, 1961 A. H. SMITH 2,972,155

FLOOR TREATING APPARATUS Filed Nov. 20, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR. AARON H. SMiTH WAZ MW M United. States Patent 2,972,155 FLOOR TREATING APPARATUS Aaron H. Smith, Lynn, Mass, assignor to Signal Manufactoring Co chusetts Lynn, Mass., a corporation of Massa- This'invention rel-ates to apparatus for treating floors of the kind having a pair of laterally disposed brushes for rotation about spacedparallel shafts, the latter being driven by a common motor. Such machines are commonly used for applying cleaning and polishing compounds to floors and are adapted, when supported by a dolly, to apply cleaning compounds to rugs. The principal objects of this invention'are to provide a machine of the, aforesaid type for applying cl'eaning fluid more effectively and economically to the rugs for cleaning; and to. provide an apparatus whose operation will not be impaired by an accumulation of the cleaning compound and/or lint brushed from the rug. 1

As herein illustrated, the apparatus comprises incombination a pair of laterally spaced brushes mounted for rotation about vertical axes and a mount supporting the apparatusv independently of the brushes, including a part disposed between the brushes with surfaces skirting the peripheries thereof, containing ports through which liquid is supplied to the bristles of the brushes at their peripheries as they travel. by the ports. There are means at the ports for cramping the bristles as they move by so as tocause the bristles to wipe across the ports in their movement and means coupling the brushes to their shafts for freedom of vertical movement which effects wiping action of the bristles heightwise of the ports The invention will now be described in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is a vertical section through the axis of a double-brush machine at one side of the vertical center line, showing only one brush and aportion of thedolly supporting the machine;

,Fig. 2 is a top view of the dolly removed from the ma r Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the dolly;

Fig. 4 is a bottom view of the dolly;

Fig. 5 is a vertical section taken on the line 55 of Fig. 2;

Fig.6 is a fragmentary vertical section taken in a vertical plane passing through one of the ports in the dolly;

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary horizontal section taken on the line 7-7 of Fig. 6; and

Fig. 8 is a fragmentary view from the bottom side of the brush showing the brush latch.

Referring to the drawings, Fig. 1, there is shown a casting 10 which is symmetrical with respect to the center line x2 c, in which are journaled vertically disposed shafts 12, the upper ends of which are connected by suitable gears 14 and 15 to the shaft of a motor M mounted at the top of the casting, and the lower ends of which carry brushes 16.

When used for cleaning and polishing floors the apparatus rests on the lower faces of the brushes 16 and is supported by the bristles which thereby effect good scrubbing and polishing action.

When the apparatus is to be used for cleaning rugs it must be supported independently of the brushes so that 2 the latter-will not dig into the pile and'make itdiflicult to control. Accordingly, a dolly is used-t0 support the apparatus, such as shown in Figs. 2 to 5 inclusive. Thedolly 18 is a rigid plastic molding having'a flat top plate 20 containing a pair of openings 20-20 for receiving bosses 2222at the underside of the casting (Fig. :1), which hold the dolly in position. There are'split sleeves bounding the openings 20-20 which yieldingly grip the bosses 22--22 when forced onto them.

The dolly has three wheels (Fig. 4), a front-wheel'22 and a pair of laterally spaced rear wheels 24-24, which facilitate its movement andhence movement of the appa: ratus when resting thereon, across the surface-beingoperated upon. At the underside of the plate 20 there are downwardly extending, outwardly facing, curved walls 2626, which-are concentric with the centers of rota-- tion of the brush shafts, and which are of'suchradius that their surfaces have light contact withthe bristles about'the peripheries of the brushes (Figs. 1, 6and 7).

At the rear part of the dolly (Figs. 2 and 5) and extending downwardly from the'top plate'20', there is a depression or pocket 28, into which fluid may be fed, at such a rate as not to completely fill it and cause overflow, from a container mounted on the handle of the machine; as disclosed in pending application, Serial No. 744,128, filed June 24, 1958. As therein shown, fluid issupplied through a valve from a container to -a downwardly-ex tending tube, the lower end of which is disposed in the pocket 28. At each side ofthe pocket there is a port 30, which extends from the pocket through-the curved wall'to the inner face thereof, forsupplying liquid fromthe-pocket directly to the peripherally located bristles (Figs. 6 and 7). Delivery of theflu-id to the'brush rather than to the floor avoids excessive-loss of liquid by-absorption into the base of the rug before'it can be dis tributed and enhances distribution uniformly and-thoroughly into the pile.

The cleaning compound generally-contains detergents, oils, waxes and the like,- which tend to harden and'to accumulate about the ports, especially when lint and other extraneous matter from therugs mixes-withit. Accordingly, itis desirable to provide means for constantly wiping the open mouthsofthe ports to: keep them clean and to permit free flow of the-cleaning compound when the apparatusis. in use. This is effected in part by forming a raised boss or rib 32 on'theinner surface of each wall 26 at the port, as shown particularly in Figs. 3 and 7, so that as the-bristles pass the ports they are crowded inwardly (Fig. 7) and thus are'caused to wipe across the port with considerable force and hence to remove any accumulation of wax or other extraneous material that may be present. Waxes and the like are notable for the fact that wiping action entirely in one direction results in grooving the deposit in that direction and leaving ribs of unremoved material. Hence, it is desirable to Wipe not only crosswise of the port but also heightwise thereof. Accordingly, for this and other reasons, which appear hereinafter, the brushes 16 are mounted on their shafts so as to be free to move heightwise. As here illustrated, each brush has a central bushing 34 (Fig. 1), adapted to receive the lower end of its shaft 12. The bushing 34 is non-circular in cross-section as is also the shaft, so that rotation of the shaft effects rotation of the brush. Freedom of heightwise movement of the brush on the shaft is provided by reducing the lower end of the shaft, so that there are vertically spaced shoulders 36 and 38 and mounting a latch on the underside of the brush for engagement with the reduced portion of the shaft between the shoulders. The latch, as shown in Fig. 8, has a circular opening 42 which may be engaged with the reduced portion of the shaft and holds the brush for movement up and down through the Patented Feb; 21,.

distance between the shoulders 36 and 38. A portion Ofthelatch, at opposite sides of the opening 46, are yieldingly connected so that the latch will snap on and oil the shaft.

This construction-is especially desirable for'itpermits the brush to seek its own level in the cleaning operation, so that the brush Willnot dig into the rug; The vertical movement of the brush, which takes place constantly as the apparatus is moved about, because of the action of the pile on the brush, results in a strong wiping action of the bristles heightwise of the ports, thereby removing any wax or dirt which is not removed by the rotary action of the brushes.

The combination of the lateral and heightwise movement of the bristles with respect to the ports keep the ports clean so that it is seldom necessary to dismantle the machine for the purpose of digging out hardened Wax and lint. 1

The latch has a still further advantage that it makes it easy to mount and dismount the brushes when required without resort to tools. f

It should be understood that the present disclosure is for the purpose of illustration only and that this invention includes all modifications and equivalents which fall within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. Apparatus for treating floors comprising a pair of brushes and means for effecting rotation thereof about shafts, a mount supporting the apparatus independently of the brushes, said mount including a part disposed between the brushes with surfaces skirting the peripheries of the brushes, ports in said surfaces adjacent the brushes through which liquid is supplied to the bristles of the brushes at their peripheries as the bristles rotate, means at the ports for cramping the bristles as they travel by the ports so that they wipe the ports, and means coupling the brushes to their shafts which permit vertical movement of the brushes and hence of the bristles heightwise of the ports.

r 2. Apparatus for treating floors comprising, in combination, means mounting a pair of brushes for rotation in opposite directions about vertical shafts, and means for effecting rotation of the' shafts, a dolly supporting the mounting means from its underside with its brushes raised from the floor, said dolly having wheels to facilitate manipulation, and a part interposed between the brushes having outwardly facing surfaces concentric with the brushes, which have light contact with the bristles, ports 2,972,155 r x a l slidably engaged with the shafts between the shoulders which connect the brushes ,to their shafts for vertical movement and hence heightwise movement of the bristles relative to the ports.

3. The combination 'with means mounting a pair of laterally spaced brushes for rotation about vertical shafts, a dolly cooperable with the mounting means for supporting the mounting means independently of the brushes, said dolly having oppositely curved guards concentric with the centers of rotation of the brushes,'arranged to lie between the brushes and to have light contact with the bristles as they travel in rotation, means on the dolly for receiving a liquid, ports for discharging liquid therefrom, through each of the curved guards to the peripheries of the brushes, a raised boss on each wall at the port for crowding the bristles as they move across the port, so as to wipe the port, and means coupling each brush to its shaft which permits vertical movement of the,brush and hence its bristles heightwise of the port to wipe the port in a direction perpendicular to the wiping action effected by rotation of the brush. V v v 4. A dolly for supporting a twin-brush machine for V movement along the floor with the brushes freely suspended, comprising a rigid frame having a flat top por-' tion and downwardly extending end portions at its opposite ends, said top portion being adapted to have contact with the underside of the machine, and said end portions mounting wheels for-supporting the dolly for movement along the floor, a pair of longitudinally disposed, oppositely and outwardly facing vcurved. webs, situated at the underside of the top portion on a median between the ends for disposal between the brushes with their surfaces in contact with the brushes, the outwardly diverging end portions of the webs being connected to said ends of the frame, and forming therewith wheel wells in which the wheels are adapted to be journaled out of direct contact with the brushes, and an open top pocket situated near one end of the top extending downin the surfaces through which liquid is delivered to the r wardly from the top between the diverging portions of the webs, said pocket having at its bottom ports extending therefrom through the webs for conducting liquid to the peripheral portions of the brushes having contact with the webs.

References Cited-in the file of patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,469,077 Foster Sept. 25, 1923 1,949,659 Ritter 7 Mar. 6, 1934 2,680,260 Danielsson A June8, 1954 2,730,738 Humes Jan; 17,- 1956 2,784,433 1957 

